How to Play Wargames
How to Play Wargames If gaming is new to you, you have a problem in that there are so many games available, you may want to be able to play games on particular periods of history at levels of conflict (tactical, strategic, air, naval) without taking the chance of running into some game that requires a bit more seasoning than you might have at the moment. The problem is easy enough to solve with a little informed advice.
First of all, if you haven't played a game before, you've got the fairly simple one in this book. Having mastered an introductory game, you are ready to go after dozens of games from various periods using the same system.
By game "system" I mean games using the same movement rules, the same combat rules, often very similar Combat Results Tables and Terrain Effects Charts. The battlefields and the units of will be considerably different to reflect the different situations. And there would be a few special rules for each of these additional games.
Publishers have developed numerous games based upon the system used in Drive on Metz. This game system is not only the simplest available but the most commonly used, having been developed in the late 1950s for the first commercial wargames. Games using this system, with numerous variations, are available in every era and are a good way to start as they enable you to go into whatever period you like without learning a lot of new game mechanics.
Once you have mastered some of these simpler games, and each of them has additional little wrinkles which will expand your repertoire of game rules, you are ready to go after more complex games.
Some of the more readily available simple games are known as the "Avalon Hill Classics." These are some of the earliest games published. Some of them are over thirty years old, and still in print. They are very similar to the other publishers simpler games. Nearly all of the easy to play games pay homage to these early Avalon Hill games. The simple mechanics of these early games worked so well that no one has really be able to come up with a better approach for easy to learn and play games. The games comprising the Avalon Hill Classics are Waterloo, Stalingrad, Battle of The Bulge, Afrika Korps and D-Day.
Other publishers have brought out simple games over the years and there are always new ones available. Inquire at a game store or from one of the companies that sells games by mail.
